Ever since I came back to this forum after a year off there is usually an average of 1-3 users online. Back in the day when Blaine did his Street Magic special this place was rockin'. Of course with mostly beginners who were seeking out every effect that they saw Blaine perform on TV. Oddly enough I just noticed the shows are on now (Frozen In Time) and (Street Magic). After Street Magic I remember seeing 50-100 members online on average, and several hundred for the contests. But for most magic is just a passing phase, but sometimes a simple TV show can rejuvenate interest. Before Street Magic made its debut, I was still performing stage magic mostly, and was thinking about moving on to another field due to burn out.

But the show actually changed that by rekindling my interest. Blaine also transcended the art by showcasing the spectator's reactions as opposed to the magician, which was ingenious. The spectator's reactions reminded me why I have done this for so long. It also motivated me to do a lot more close-up work which made traveling a lot easier and lighter. Blaine's next show is in May, and you can only wonder how many others will embark on their own magic journey after seeing it, and maybe even end up here and post in this thread. Or maybe those who left will get bitten by the magic bug again, and end up back here as some do?

I never get tired of seeing Blaine's shows, probably because they inspired me to stick with magic and take it in more directions, which made a huge difference in my career and life. So every time I see one of his shows I get that special feeling again, which in itself is truly "magical." Luckily he seems to be going back to his roots and doing more "street magic" and is supposed to have all new material in May. I am looking forward to it, and even heard that he may be doing some True Astonishment stuff. I doubt as many people will ever be that active as they were back then, but it was a magical time for sure.

That is why I left for awhile as it just got too boring here, and started lacking the in-depth magic discussion that the forum once had. It seemed like a tremendous waste of time posting that much, but it was a lot of fun also. I tried to post interesting topics to get things back to normal again, but there just was not the same interest as there once was, and only the most dedicated magicians/users stayed around. Nonetheless I am still here 9 years later, as is a couple of others from back then. Crazy how time flies. But it is very odd to be one of the originals from back in the day, and posting frequently during the forum's prime, and to see it so slow today. It was a special time back then. Whether that happens again is yet to be seen.

But if it does I am sure Blaine will be the reason. His magic is accesible and doable in the real world, and all you need is a "deck of cards" that is why it is so interesting. It is also kind of nostalgic to be writing a post such as this again on the forums, when back in the day I averaged 20-30 paragraph posts/essays every day. Also this was my first magic forum and the one that I posted to the most. So sometimes it feels good to come back home.

i also agree. About David Blaine and the number of forum users.

Sirbrad, it is awesome to see you back on the forums. I remember talking to you over these forums several years ago. Penguin Magic means a lot to me, not just because I work for them, but because I wouldn't have met the people that I know in magic or be where I am today without these forums.

It is rather sad to see how slow the forums are now, but they do go through cycles. I've actively visited more than 5-6 times a day for the last 5 years or so and I've seen periods of time in which we've had 50 users, 0 users, 20 users... it fluctuates. The Penguin Forums are invincible.

David Blaine is planning a new special around May of this year, so we will probably see a huge upswing in users of the forum around that time. There are a few things that I am going to be doing to try and breathe new life into these forums as well.

Only time will tell. It's great to see you back on the boards.

All the best!

You know I think there are a bunch of us who still lurk quite often....It is just that for us, most of everything has already been said. I think Chris is right. If Blaine has a successful show that might breathe some life back into the community with new users. Of course when that happens we will be getting a lot of questions that we have all done to death! lol. Hopefully we can all tolerate another round of "I just started magic and I'm doing a show next week....what trick should I buy?"

Yeah that is what is what I said in my first post regarding Blaine returning in May. I know I have repeated myself for years answering the same questions over and over. But at some point it is no longer about you but helping others. Thanks Chris, I remember the conversations and all the Sankey talk.

blaines show was cool though i personally like derren brown and cyrils shows the best ^___^

when the how do i do this and this etc.. pop up all over the place :p ill let you guys handle it lol.

last one about a derren brown effect; i had to keep explaining that no one was gonna expose it -__-

I have handled it for 9 years.

The biggest irony of that was that the effect in question was one of Derren's most long winded, laborious card effects. Good for "pipe and slipper moments" but not a real crowd pleaser.

i know.. i was like.. who is actually gonna learn and do the whole routine lol.

im not saying its bad if you do it :p but i doubt anyone new to magic is gonna learn that entire routine and master it. than go out and perform it.

I assume your talking about Smoke?

no, were talking about his 3 card routine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRSv0xx4A80